/fa/ - Fashion

>>13524822
I really fucking want a pair of 14i steel toe cap-boots again, like the ones in the pic. I bought them used and made the mistake of not sizing up (vintage DMs are UK9 --> EU42 instead of EU43, ouchie my toe-hurting juices). I sold the pair to a friend of mine whose feet actually fit inside the boot.

Should I go for Solovair? They have a similar pair available, in my size. I've been thinking about this for months. My perversion for leather can't be sated.

>>13501579
Pre-2003 DMs or Solovair?

I have a pair of size UK9/EU43 1490s, of course made in China so the quality hasn't really been up there.

I want a new pair of high black boots with a similar silhouette to 14-eyelet DMs, and I have two choices. Either a pair of Dr. Martens 1914s (14 eyelets, soft toe-cap) made in England in the 70s, or a brand new pair of Solovairs own 14i, steel-toe capped model. Both boots are of course made in Britain, the DMs have only seen light use (the tread is still almost perfectly intact and the leather has only few marks from light use around the toe cap and the calves) and the Solovairs are, well, new. Both boots have hi-shine-uppers and a standard, low-profile tread.

Which pair should I go with? The seller for the DMs provided me with inner and outer measurements of the sole, and apparently the old size UK10/EU45 is the same in lenght (inner and outer) as my pair of China-made UK9/EU43. The boots are lenghty enough, but a bit on the wide side (1cm or so), and I've thought about just adding some thick insole and boot socks to compensate for that extra space. With the Solovairs I'd need to compensate for the steel-toe cap but I already have the measurements made from another pair of steel-toed Solovairs I have in my cabinet.

The real question lies with the myth about vintage Docs lasting forever: do they? Some say the quality gradually gave away after they became sort of an alternative fashion-item in the 80s and 90s, and that only the earlier pairs are actually any good. If this is true, would going with a brand new pair be better? Does anyone happen to have any experience with actual vintage Docs vs. Solovair?